I was invited to attend the taping of a Point Taken's episode about the rising costs of college and collective student loan debt. As you lovely folks know, I spent four years in college before running out of money to attend. In 2009, I found a job in Cambridge and changed my life. I've spent the last seven years attending lectures, volunteering, and doing my own exploring. Those seven years of conversations and service broadened my worldview in ways I never could've expected...and in ways college never could have prepared me for. Here's An Education, my post behind my September 2015 feature in Boston Magazine. It's a great read, but for now, I'd love for you to learn more about my interlocutors. They're amazing.
Carlos Watson
Point Taken Panel Moderator and Entrepreneur
Carlos is an entrepreneur and Emmy-winning journalist based in Silicon Valley. In the media world, he anchored shows for CNN and MSNBC and hosted a series of Emmy-winning interview specials. As a businessman, Carlos built Achieva College Prep Services into one of the nation's largest college prep companies and worked as the Global Head of Education Investment Banking for Goldman Sachs and as a management consultant for McKinsey & Company.
Charles R. Taibi
COO, UNCOLLEGE
Charlie is the Chief Operating Officer for UNCOLLEGE, a program that follows the U.K’s ‘gap year’ formula: helping young people pursue their interests proactively by learning relevant skills and gaining real world experience. It teaches the soft skills learned in college and develops them during a nine-month gap year for students preparing for the next step in life.
Robert Kelchen, PhD
Assistant Professor of Higher Education at Seton Hall University
His research interests include higher education finance, accountability policies and practices, and student financial aid. His research and commentary have been covered by outlets including The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, NPR, Politico, and Newsweek, in addition to appearances on MSNBC and Al Jazeera America.
Margaret Hoover
Author and Conservative Commentator
Margaret Hoover is the author of the best-selling "American Individualism: How a New Generation of Conservatives Can Save the Republican Party", a CNN political commentator, and president of American Unity Fund, an organization that works with Republicans to achieve full LGBT equality.
Randall Pinkston
Journalist, Attorney, Adjunct Professor
Randall Pinkston is a former correspondent and anchor with Al Jazeera America and CBS News. He has covered the White House, Capitol Hill, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and the U.S. Intervention in Haiti. Randall is also an adjunct professor with the University of Mississippi and the City University of New York.
*The glorious image, video, and panelist bios were taken directly from the PBS Point Taken Facebook page. Aren't their photographers and social media maven talented?
